CHARACTERIZING THE SAN FRANCISCO COYOTE POPULATION USING NONINVASIVE GENETIC SAMPLING.

Monica G Serrano-Renteria; UC Davis; mgserrano@ucdavis.edu; Tali Caspi, Stevi Vanderzwan, Ben Sacks

Wildlife are increasingly expanding their ranges into urban ecosystems, which presents both challenges associated with conflict and opportunities for nature appreciation. Coyotes (Canis latrans) are one of the most conspicuous and controversial wildlife species to utilize urban habitats across North America. After their extirpation from San Francisco in the 1920s, re-colonization by coyotes was first documented in the early 2000s. Since then, they have become increasingly visible in the public eye, garnering both excitement and annoyance. Despite their notoriety, little is known about basic population parameters, such as the distribution and number of family groups. We used genetic analyses of non-invasively collected scat samples along with opportunistically collected tissue samples from road-kills and other sources from 2015-2024 to identify 199 distinct individuals. From these individual genotypes, we built a pedigree, identified family groups, and located territories on the landscape. During 2020-2021, we used intensive scat surveys to estimate abundances and reproductive success of males and females. We additionally describe intra-city movements, pair formation, and inferences of immigration. Together, these findings provide a comprehensive portrait into the genetic structure and family dynamics of an extremely urbanized population.

A.I. and eDNA 
Friday 8:25 AM
   Student Paper